‘Fatherly love,’ says teacher caught molesting teenage girls

A Vietnamese teacher faces charges of molesting girls at his secondary school, notwithstanding his claims of “fatherly love.”

To Hoang Son, a chemistry teacher in the southern province of Ca Mau, was accused by the parents of several students in 8th and 9th grades of groping and touching them in the thigh and chest while teaching them.

He apologized to the students and their parents, but claimed he had developed paternal affection for them since he lives far away from his own daughter.

If charged, Son faces jail term of up to 12 years in jail.

Recent reports of school teachers sexually assaulting their students have shocked the nation.

In March a Da Nang City court sentenced an ethics teacher to life for raping several third-graders.

Last year 1,547 cases of child sex abuse were reported, down 2.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Public Security.

In most cases the perpetrators were found to be people familiar with the children, such as teachers, school security personnel, relatives, or neighbors, prompting lawmakers and non-governmental organizations to call for parents to be more alert and pay more attention.